Microsoft BizSpark has thrown support behind the Institute as our first charter sponsor. Microsoft has an excellent, Founder-centeric offering:

Founders will have access to the full suite of Microsoft products for development purposes,

Founders will gain access to the BizSpark network for investor, vendor, and advisor contacts,

Five Founders will be BizSpark Fellows, receiving a scholarship to the institute,

Microsoft will make facilities available for Summer 2009 sessions.

The Founders Fund is looking for strong teams who believe their companies can transform an industry or create a new one. Successful founders not only articulate their vision with passion, but build a roster with expertise in engineering, product design, and business development. We want to meet both new entrepreneurs with fresh vision and seasoned veterans who've learned from experience. We value innovation and inspiration, but also the attention to detail and hard work needed to operate a company that will realize its value for employees and shareholders.

Charles River Ventures has a clear investment focus: seek out visionary entrepreneurs, and give them the support they need to build great companies from the ground up. Since 1970, Charles River Ventures has helped startups turn ideas into real businesses. Companies like Cascade, CIENA, ChipCom, NetGenesis, Parametric Technology, Sonus, Speechworks, Stratus Computer, Sybase, Vignette and dozens more have realized stunning success with the backing and support of CRV.

The Funding Lifecycle

Summer 2009 Bay Area Semester

What are the typical stages of the funding life cycle for different types of startup businesses? What kind of specific milestones should one expect to meet in order to progress through those funding stages? Terms and dilution worries alleviated. How to estimate how much money you need. Lessons on raising money from an expert. How and where to even begin the fundraising process? Negotiating the deal. Where to raise money from and the difference between family and friends and VCs. Guidelines on what to do with raised funds.

Goal:

Create a funding plan with targets

Date:

2009-08-25, 06:30 PM

Mentors

Scott Painter CEO, TrueCar

Over the course of his prolific career, Scott Painter, CEO of TrueCar, Inc., has formed over 30 companies – the majority of which bring innovation and advancement to the retail automotive industry. A prolific fundraiser, Painter has risen over one one billion dollars fro...

Scott Heiferman CEO, Meetup

Scott Heiferman is Co-Founder & CEO of Meetup, the world's largest network of local community groups

Russ Fradin Chairman & CEO, Dynamic Signal

Russell Fradin is the Founder and CEO of Dynamic Signal, a new startup in the Social Media Marketing and Monitoring space. Prior to founding Dynamic Signal, Russ was the co-founder and CEO of Adify, acquired by Cox for $300M in the Spring of 2008.
Prior to starting ...

Munjal Shah CEO, Like.com

Munjal Shah is the CEO of Riya, developer of the Like.com Visual shopping service. Previously, Munjal was CEO and Co-Founder of the successful eBay seller auction management service, Andale. Munjal has an MS in Computer Science from Stanford, a BS from UCSD and was nomina...

The Founder Institute is the world's largest entrepreneur training and startup launch program, helping aspiring founders across the globe build enduring technology companies. Based in Silicon Valley and with chapters across 50 countries, the Founder Institute has helped launch over 1,563 companies in 5 years. The company's mission is to "Globalize Silicon Valley" and build sustainable startup ecosystems that will create one million new jobs worldwide.